Obituary of Thelmarie Guinn

Thelmarie (Danley) Guinn was born in Dewar, OK to Jess & Ann (Johnson) Danley on January 29, 1920 and passed from this life on January 2, 2014 in Tulsa, OK at the age of 93. As a young child, Thelmarie was more interested in tools than dolls and loved going to hardware stores. When circumstances permitted she assisted her father in carpentry tasks and could often be found on the roof of a house handing her father tools and nails. Her father also worked in the coal mines in the Dewar area and was leasing/ operating a mine when the local bank failed in 1924, decimating his payroll and Thelmarie's savings in the process. Shortly after that failure, at age four, she confronted the bank's president on Dewar's main street and exclaimed "You stole my money!" She was quite precocious and had learned to read and had begun taking piano lessons (often practicing four hours per day) before entering primary school in Dewar where she skipped the second and third grades. Hard times brought on by the Great Depression and the untimely death of her father in 1935 precipitated a move to Okmulgee where Thelmarie graduated as the salutatorian of her class in 1936 at age 16. During that year a representative of Juilliard visited the area and, after an audition, offered her a piano scholarship that Thelmarie declined, opting instead to complete a two-year junior college course with an emphasis on business classes. Around that time, in the part-time employ of the National Youth Administration, she played piano for radio broadcasts originating from a station in Okmulgee. During World War II she moved to Tulsa and worked at the Douglas Aircraft Company as a statistical typist. Her cousin Donna Jean also worked at Douglas and the two bachelorettes spent many a night partying until well past midnight. In 1950, Thelmarie began working and taking ceramics classes at Dot's Ceramics in West Tulsa. By 1952 she was teaching classes in the basement of her home, using a kiln gifted to her by her mother. In 1953 she opened a storefront, Ceramic Cottage, at 211 West Latimer in Tulsa, with one room dedicated to private piano classes taught by her mother. Around this time, several of her ceramic creations won first-place ribbons at the Tulsa State Fair. In 1957 she was awarded the Tulsa distributorship from Duncan Enterprises, the premier manufacturer in the Ceramic Hobbies industry. In the late fifties/early sixties she helped in the establishment of ceramic classes by the City of Tulsa's Parks Department. In succeeding years she was instrumental in the initiation of ceramics programs at Tulsa Senior Citizen Centers and (what later became) The Center For Individuals With Physical Challenges. She was a founding and life-time member of The Greater Tulsa Ceramic Association. In 1955, during a vacation quest to investigate unusual ceramic glazes produced from the dumps of gold mines, Thelmarie discovered the town of Cripple Creek, CO. It reminded her of the mines in Dewar and she purchased a house there in 1958. She had many fond memories of the vacations she spent in Cripple Creek, particularly the days shared with relatives and the parties she attended with notable local residents Dick Johnson and Stephen and Bonnie Mackin. By 1961 Ceramic Cottage had outgrown the space at the Latimer location and she moved the business to its present location at 748 South Wheeling Avenue. In 1971 she significantly expanded those premises. In 1979 her daughter Ann joined the business and the two of them doubled the shop's revenues over the next five years, outselling Duncan distributors in some major metropolitan markets including Chicago and Dallas. In 1984 Ann became a partner in the business. In 2009 Thelmarie underwent surgery for two unrelated cancer tumors - one in the lungs and one in the colon. By this time Ann had assumed a leadership role in the business. Thelmarie returned to work on a part time basis about one year later but after several months decided to retire. She joined Centenary United Methodist Church in the early 1950s and was a member for the remainder of her life. Early on, she played piano for Centenary's Sunday School classes and contributed to the purchase of a grand piano for the sanctuary. She regularly contributed to the John 3:16 Mission and was a 50-year/lifetime member of Eastern Star's Chapter 175 in Henryetta, Oklahoma. Thelmarie was preceded in death by her parents and her son, John E. Guinn, III. She is survived by her daughter, Ann G. Milligan and Russell Foster; her son, Hugh D. Guinn; her grandchildren, Jackie and her husband Steve, Renee and her husband Troy, John and Jessica; five great grandchildren; and one great great grandchild. Thelmarie will lie in state at the Ninde Brookside funeral home Wednesday, January 8 from 10:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. with family receiving friends from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. Her funeral will be held at 2:00 P.M. Thursday at Centenary United Methodist Church and she will be laid to rest at Memorial Park Cemetery, Tulsa, OK. Contributions may be made in Thelmarie's memory to Centenary United Methodist Church, 631 N Denver Ave, Tulsa, OK 74106 or the John 3:16 Mission, Easter Dinner, 506 N Cheyenne Ave, Tulsa, OK 74103. Ninde Brookside Chapel ninde.com 918-742-5556